Plague
by Haytar96
Summary: Whiplash is back! And he's after Pepper! What did he do to her! Pepperony. Requested by Princessete! I don't own IMAA.
1. Chapter 1

**(A/N A request from princessete!)**

Pepper sat in a chair in the armory comfortably reading a magazine. Tony grumbled over his and Rhodey's broken armor, they won a battle against Blizzard but with some problems. She smiled to herself and enjoyed his annoyance; he refused to call her for help because he thought they could handle it by themselves. An alarm blared and all of them looked up at the screen that formed in mid air, "Whiplash!" Tony said and looked at his armor with panic. Pepper grinned and jumped up from her seat, "I'll do it." She said and went over to her armor. "Uhhh Pepper….maybe that's not such a good idea." Tony said waling up to her; Pepper rolled her eyes as her armor covered her body. "I'll be just fine Tony." She said and Tony gave her a look and she sighed "Tell you what…I'll stall him until you get your suit fixed." She said and her faceplate closed. Before Tony could say anything Pepper flew out of armory towards the city.

She flew through the air towards whiplashes location; she scanned the area and saw his whips. "Whiplash!" Pepper yelled and the villain turned. Whiplashed laughed and lashed out his whips, "Ahhh Rescue! Or should I say Pepper?" he said and his whips ignited so they flashed with electricity. "You're just the hero I wanted to see." He said and Pepper shot her repulsers at him, Whiplash laughed and dodged her attempt to hit him. Before Pepper could do anything Whiplash flew at her and slammed her up against a building, Pepper struggled against his grip but he wouldn't give. "Computer all power to the uni-beam!" she shouted and her chest lit up purple, she shot a large beam at whiplash making him fly backwards.

"Pepper! Hey how are you doing?" Tony asked over the com systems obviously worried. Pepper sighed "I'm fine…Whiplash somehow knew that I would be here…he said that I was just the hero he wanted to see." She said and looked over at Whiplash to see he was gone. Crap she thought and scanned the area before taking to the air. "That doesn't sound good. Get back to the armory." Tony said serious and Pepper reluctantly did as she was told.

Pepper took off her armor and rolled her shoulders. She turned her head and moved the side of her shirt and looked at her shoulder. "Oh….great another bruise for my dad to complain about." She muttered and sat down in her chair again. Tony looked over at Pepper and saw that she was wincing and rolling her shoulders, "What's up?" he asked putting down his tools. Pepper shook her head "Eh…Whiplash just shoved me against a building. I think he was going to do something but I stopped him…" she said packing up her things. Tony walked over to her and sat on the arm of her chair, "Lemme see." He said and Pepper looked at him confused. "Let me see the bruise." Tony said and Pepper rolled her eyes and showed him her shoulder.

"Ow…" he said and jogged over to a little refrigerator and got out an icepack. Tony walked over to Pepper again and gave her the icepack, "Here…" he said and sat beside her again. Pepper gave him a small smile and placed the icepack on her shoulder, "I'm sorry you had to go out there alone…" Tony said suddenly. Pepper looked up at him and sighed "I'm fine Tony. All I got was a little bruise and an A-wall Whiplash." She said and stood up. Another alarm went off making Tony and Pepper look up at the computer warily, Tony walked over to the computer and his eyes widened. "What is it?" Pepper asked starting to move towards him. "We have an intruder!" Tony said and moved towards Pepper only to jump back because of a large piece of rock fell in front of him. Whiplash came through the ceiling; Pepper stumbled back when Whiplash turned towards her giving Tony no mind. "Get away from her!" Tony shouted trying to get over the rocks; Whiplash merely shot something at the ceiling making more rocks fall on the pile. Tony jumped back and shouted "Pepper!"

Pepper back up so she was against the wall, she looked over at her armor. She was too far way, Whiplash approached her and grabbed her by the neck. "L-let…m-m-me go!" Pepper tried to say but the lack of oxygen made it hard, whiplash held the squirming Pepper and chuckled. He spun around and threw the redhead across the room making her hit her head smack against the stones that fell. Pepper's world swam and darkness slowly covered her vision.

Whiplash moved closer to the unconscious girl holding a syringe filled with red liquid. He bent down and stuck the needle into the redheads arm, "Fix…the job is done. I'm coming back…all we need to do now is wait." He said and flew out of the armory.

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Tony hit his fists against the rocks and when they didn't move he grabbed his Iron Man glove and shot at the boulders in his way. The rocks blasted apart covering the lab in dust; he quickly looked around until he saw Pepper in a crumpled heap on the floor. "Pepper!" he gasped and ran to her side. Tony pulled Pepper up so he was cradling her in his arms, "Pep…please wake up…" he said whispering as he held her close. The redhead moaned and turned her head so her cheek rested on Tony's shoulder, she opened her eyes slowly and looked up at him. Tony laughed relieved "Hey." He said and Pepper sighed, "Hey..." she said and tried to slowly sit up. Tony helped her stand but didn't move his hands away from her waist. "I'm fine Tony." Pepper said trying to move away from him but Tony didn't budge. "Pepper your head is bleeding." He said and Pepper rolled her eyes.

"All I need is a good night's sleep." Pepper said moving towards the exit. Tony followed forgetting about his now slightly damage lab, "I'm coming with you." he said and Pepper stopped and spun around. "Why?" she asked and gasped when Tony pulled her close to him, her heart skipped a few beats. Tony hugged her and whispered in her ear "humor me."

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Tony and Pepper went to Pepper's apartment and went inside to see a note from Pepper's dad.

_Pepper,_

_I had to leave on a last minute assignment. Sorry honey…be good! Stay out of trouble!_

_Dad_

"I guess you're coming to my house." Tony said sighing, Pepper looked up and him and then went upstairs to get her overnight bag. An hour later Tony unlocked the front door of the house he shared with his father. He held the door open for Pepper and grabbed her bag; the redhead sighed and walked into the house. They walked into the living room to see Howard sitting there reading a news paper, "Hey guys…" he said and raised an eyebrow at the purple bag Tony was holding. "Pepper's dad had to go on a mission and I didn't want her to be alone….especially when Whiplash broke into the armory and attacked her." Tony said and looked at Pepper who crossed her arms sadly. Howard stood just seeing the blood on the girl's forehead. "You guys alright?" He asked looking at her head; Pepper nodded and gave him a sweet smile. "I'm fine. Tony is being paranoid." She said nudging the boy beside her.

Tony nudged Pepper towards the stairs. "You'll be staying in my room." Tony said opening a door revealing a queen sized bed with red sheets and a grey comforter. On one of the walls was a desk littered with papers and a laptop, Tony has a nightstand with two pictures on it. One was a woman with dark hair and eyes, another was her. Tony put her bag on the desk and turned to face her with a small smiled on his face, "Nice place." Pepper said smiling at him moving into the room. Tony laughed and nodded "Ya it's not bad…" he said and moved towards her, "Get changed." He said and moved past her closing his door.

Once Pepper was done she opened the door to see Tony leaning up against the wall near it, "Done?" he asked and the redhead nodded. Tony then looked at her head for a moment and then he lead her over to his bed and tucked her in, "goodnight Pep. I'll be right over here…ok?" he asked and Pepper nodded and sleepily closed her eyes. Tony smiled and brushed a strand of hair out of her face and moved to set up a makeshift bed on the floor next to her.

Tony lay down on the floor, very unaware of what was happening to Pepper as she slept.

**(A/N How was that first chapter Princessete? Please review!)**


	2. Chapter 2

Pepper woke up to the annoying sound of an alarm clock; she grumbled but realized she doesn't even have an alarm clock. She sat up quickly and looked around, "Pepper." A voice mumbled from the floor. She looked down to see Tony groggily look up at her "hit the button." He said annoyed, Pepper chuckled and turned off the alarm. She stretched and looked at the time, her eyes widened "maybe this is why you're late all the time!" she said and flew out of bed. Tony sat up and looked at the clock "It's only seven." He said getting off the floor, Pepper poked her head out of the bathroom door "School starts in half an hour!" she said and the bathroom door snapped shut.

Tony chuckled and sighed, he went over to his closet and pulled out a clean shirt and put it on. "There…ready." He said and simply and waited for Pepper. Howard walked into the room "ready for school?" he asked ,"Ya…just waiting on Pepper…" Tony said looking towards the bathroom door. Howard nodded "How did you sleep…" he asked curiously, Tony blushed faintly "don't worry dad…I slept on the floor." He said and Howard smiled "good." He said and left the room.

The bathroom door opened and Pepper came rushing out wearing a simple blue pair of jeans with a purple button up shirt and her converses. Her hair was sill messy but she didn't seem to care "Come on!" Pepper said and tugged Tony out of the room and down the stairs. They said a quick "bye" to Howard and were out the door.

"Tony…remind me to set your alarm for an hour earlier." Pepper said as she put up her hair in a messy ponytail, Tony snorted "not a chance…" he said and Pepper rolled her eyes. They entered the school and met Rhodey at his locker, "Where have you two been?!" Rhodey asked angrily. Tony looked at him and smiled "my house." He said and Rhodey raised an eyebrow, "I went to the armory and it's in shambles! What happened?" he asked in a yelling whisper. Pepper sighed "Whiplash…" she said and Rhodey's eyes widened, "What did he want?" he asked and Tony shrugged, "He went after Pepper…but he just left." He said frowning.

The bell rang and they looked up. "We'll talk more about this later." Rhodey said and went off to class, Tony sighed and turned to face Pepper "See you in a bit." He said and Pepper nodded. Pepper went to class not feeling all that great.

Class went on and Pepper felt dizzy and shaky, she started coughing and she couldn't stop. Everyone looked at her with mild concern and amusement, the coughing stopped and Pepper looked at her hands and her eyes widened. Blood covered her hands; she shakily got out of her seat and stumbled out the classroom door. Pepper made her way down the hall towards Tony's English class, her vision blurred and she fell to her knees. "TONY!" she tried to shout but it only came out as a strained whisper, Pepper crawled forward and the bell rang. Various classroom doors opened and there were screams of surprise.

Tony walked out the door of his class and stopped. "PEPPER!" he shouted and ran towards her and he fell to his knees beside her. He saw the blood and then felt her forehead, she was burning up. "T-tony…" Pepper whispered then fell unconscious. Tony swung her up into his arms and ran down the hallway and out the front door, Rhodey stood there for a moment dumbstruck but he shook his head and ran after his friends.

Rhodey clutched at a stitch in his side as he stumbled into the armory. Tony quickly walked out of the infirmary and over to the slightly broken computer, "What happened?" Rhodey asked confused. "Pepper's really, really sick." Tony said gravely, "What does she have?" Rhodey asked now worried, Tony frowned and hit a few buttons "I don't know…all that I do know is that it has something to do with Whiplash and Mr. Fix." He said growling.

"Warning! Warning! Warning! User: Patricia Potts! Life expectancy: 3 weeks." The computer chirped and Tony paled, "If we don't find out what she has and cure it by then…Pepper's going to die." He said and Rhodey sat down shocked. "I'm most certainly not going to let her die! Not now! Not like this!" Tony said and armored up, "Rhodey stay here…watch over her. I'm going to pay Fix a visit!" he said and took to the sky. Rhodey took a deep breath "all hell is going to break loose…." He muttered and the armory door hissed open and screeched which made sparks fly. Howard came in and looked at the door a moment before turning to Rhodey.

"Where's Tony" he asked and Rhodey stood up, "He's hunting down someone…he's very blood thirsty at the moment." He said and Howard tilted his head to the side confused. Rhodey walked over to the infirmary door and opened it, Howard peered inside and gasped. "What's wrong with Pepper?!" he asked and Rhodey shrugged his shoulders and leaned against the door frame, "we don't know…Tony said Whiplash was after Pepper and this happened. All I know is Tony is out for blood and when Pepper's life is threatened you better duck and cover because that boy will do anything to destroy those who hurt her…" he said shaking his head.

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Tony hovered over the city scanning for Whiplash. The comm. Systems turned on but he ignored it, "Tony! Come home now! Pepper will get the best medical treatment money can buy! I promise!" Howard said desperately. Tony just kept scanning until the computer responded "Whiplash! Location: Empire State Building."

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"Tony! Come back now! We all need to think this through!" Howard shouted but to no avail. "All communications have been turned off." The computer said calmly, Rhodey looked at Howard then ducked down behind a rock. "Duck and cover man….duck and cover." He said.

**(A/N how was that? Please review!) **


	3. Chapter 3

"Whiplash!" Tony shouted angrily flying up to the Empire State building, Whiplash turned and laughed. "Hello Iron Man. How's Rescue?" he asked laughing. Tony growled and pushed him up against the building, "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?!" he asked shouting. Whiplash chuckled "Just a little homemade disease Mr. Fix whipped up just for her." He said laughing; Tony growled and smashed whiplashes head into the building. "What is she sick with?" he asked clutching whiplashes throat, "A special mixture of plague…it can't be treated with antibiotics. It has a cure but I'm not giving it to you!" Whiplash hissed. Tony yelled in frustration and pulled his hand back to punch the villain until he begged for mercy but a voice stopped him.

"TONY STOP IT!" Pepper shouted and let out a series of coughs; she clutched at her side and held onto the control chair. Somehow she managed to reestablish communications with him. Howard ran over to her but Pepper just waved him off, "Tony get back here…we can figure something out." She said and coughed again. More blood came out onto her hand and she fell to the floor, Howard and Rhodey ran to her side. "What are we going to do?!" Rhodey asked panicking, Howard frowned and picked up the redhead "I don't know." He said gravely.

After Pepper told him to stop Tony growled and punched the wall next to Whiplashes head, He let go of the villain and flew back to the armory. He saw Pepper was back in bed and his dad and Rhodey quietly talking in the corner of the room, they hadn't noticed Tony return yet so he went into the infirmary to watch over Pepper. He pulled a chair over to her bed and sat down, "Don't worry Pep…I won't let you die...I just have to come up with a cure before it's too late." He said sighing. Tony rubbed his eyes and leaned back in the chair; he got up and walked out to the main part of the armory.

Tony walked over to his father and sighed "We need to get her to Stark International…and figure out a cure…or-or…." He said and took a deep breath and Howard place his hand on his son's shoulder. "We'll do everything we can to help her Tony. I promise…" he said and Tony nodded.

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Three Days later:

Tony was at a lab table mixing chemicals and looking at charts while other scientists ran around him doing the same thing. "Tony you should sleep…you haven't done that in a while." A man in a white lab coat said next to him, Tony looked up and shook his head "Nah…I can't…but thanks anyway tye…" he said and kept working. Tye sighed and looked towards the ceiling; Howard came in the room holding a file. "Tony we got the results on Pepper's blood test…" he said and the young genius whipped around and grabbed the folder eagerly, he read the report and groaned in disappointment. "DAMNIT!" he shouted and tossed the file on the table, that's when it hit him. "Wait a minute…" he muttered and looked at the report again. "That's it!" he shouted and smiled, he ran over to a computer and put in a formula. Tony put it up on the big screen and everyone looked at it in surprise "Tony…what?" Howard asked and after a moment he smiled. "You got it!" he yelled happily, Tony nodded "We have everything we need but one thing…" he said and frowned. "We need a very rare Orchid that grows in the Amazon rainforest." He said sighing.

Later that day Tony sat in Pepper's hospital room, she was sleeping and Tony sat and watched. "I found the cure Pep! I just need to go away for a while…to find the one ingredient to cure you." he said in a whisper. Tony took the redhead's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, Pepper sighed in her sleep and turned her head towards him. Tony smiled and stood up; he bent down and placed a kiss on the girl's forehead. He then picked up a bag similar to the ones the military uses and left the room. "It's best if there is no goodbye..." he whispered.

Tony rode to the airport with his father, for a while they sat in silence but Tony broke it. "Please take of her…" he said and Howard looked at him, "I will…" he said. The cab pulled up to the airport and the Starks got out, Howard shook his son's hand and gave him a hug. "Don't worry Tony. Pepper's in good hands…" Howard said and Tony nodded, he bordered the plane and watched his father get smaller and smaller until he was gone.

Howard got back to Pepper's hospital room to see she was awake. "How come no one will tell me where Tony is…?" she asked frowning; Howard sighed and sat down in the chair next to her. "He's going to be gone for a little while…" he said quietly, Pepper frowned and started coughing. Howard grabbed a tissue and dabbed the blood off the corner of Pepper's mouth, the redhead took a deep breath and looked over at Howard. "Am I going to die?" she asked and Howard was speechless, he shook his head and closed his eyes for a second before looking at Pepper. "No…Pepper. I promised my son that I'll take care of you while he's gone…and that's what I'm going to do." He said calmly and Pepper nodded. "Thank you…" she said and closed her eyes.

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Tony stared out the window and only saw clouds; he looked down at a few files and sighed. He took a picture out of his pocket and stared at it for god knows how long, the picture was of Pepper. The one that was on his night stand at home, she was smiling at the camera. She was holding a book in her hands and had excitement in her eyes, Tony remembered that day very clearly.

_Flashback: _

_Tony walked out into the Rhodes backyard and found Pepper sitting on a blanket under a tree. Tony grinned and pulled out his phone and aimed it at her. "Hey Pep!" he called and Pepper looked up from her book with a bright smile, Tony pushed a button on his phone freezing the moment in place. "Haha what was that for?" Pepper asked laughing and Tony just shrugged and smiled. "You look really pretty today…it would be a crime not to take your picture." He said grinning; Pepper blushed and looked down at her book again to hide her face. _

_END OF FLASHBACK:_

Tony closed his eyes and just imagined her face. He opened his eyes again "Whatever it takes. I'll do whatever it takes." He said and looked out the window again.

**(A/N Kay soooo how was that? Oh and For Ruin I'm creating a sound track! Stay tuned! :D )**


	4. Chapter 4

**(A/N Ok I haven't updated any of my stories in a long while…Sorry! So here's a new chapter of plague! I don't or ever will own IMAA! *Sad Face*)**

Pepper yawned and opened her eyes to see sunlight shining through the window. She slowly sat up and took in the room around her; many different flowers filled her night stand along with cards and balloons. She frowned when she heard a soft snoring, Pepper looked over and was surprised to see Tony's father sitting in the chair beside her bed fast asleep. He looked like he's been there all night, Tony left last night to someplace. Nobody would tell her where. Pepper sighed and gasped when another coughing fit hit her, she tried to muffle the sound hoping to not wake Howard up but it was no use. Howard jumped and looked at her worriedly; he grabbed a tissue and helped her sit up. Howard waited until the coughing subsided and helped the redhead lye back down, Pepper was silently gasping for air as Howard poured her a glass of water. "It's getting worse." She rasped and Howard sighed as he handed her the glass. "I know." He whispered, he watched as Pepper eagerly drank the water. He noticed that the redhead began to shake and leaned forward placing his hand on her forehead, "You're getting a temperature." He muttered frustrated.

Howard sighed and got up, he pulled the girl's blankets up and said "Get some rest Pepper…I'll be right back." The redhead nodded and closed her eyes. Tony's father looked back at her from the doorway and he silently prayed that Tony would succeed in what he was doing.

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Tony moved through the forest swatting away branches as he went. The sudden sound of a twig cracking made him stop; Tony slowly moved his eyes across the trees and continued on. More twigs cracked and Tony sighed slightly annoyed "Ok T'Chala! I know you're there!" he shouted and crossed his arms. A black blur swooped from the trees and landed right in front of the young genius, "What are you doing here Stark?" T'Chala asked as he walked toward Tony.

Tony looked down at his feet and took a deep breath "Pepper's sick. Really sick." He said looking up and gestured to the flower that sat in the distance, "I need that flower to help cure what she has…or she's going to die." He continued and T'chala thought carefully. He looked at Tony and eyed him to make sure he wasn't lying, "I will help you…but Tony…come to me directly next time you want something." He said and smiled. Tony sighed in relief and nodded "Thank you T'chala." He whispered and the young king nodded.

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Rhodey stood in the armory doing his homework, he glanced up at the clock that hung on the wall and sighed. It was almost his shift at the hospital, he and Howard took turns being with Pepper. Rhodey's phone rang and he picked it up and looked at the color ID, He nearly dropped the phone when he saw who it was. Rhodey quickly answered the phone and put it to his ear "Tony?" he asked. Tony laughed "Hey Rhodey! How's Pepper?" Tony asked quickly and Rhodey sighed frowning, "She's getting worse by the minute…where are you?" he asked and Tony was silent for a moment before answering. "I'm on my way home…I have the flower but…I realized we're missing something else." He said sadly. Rhodey's frown deepened and he sat up straighter. "What are you missing?" he asked quickly. Tony sighed "It's a rare herb only found in China…and only one of its plants still grows. But that plant belongs to someone that we don't like." He said angrily. Rhodey shook his head _of course Gene would have to come into this_ he thought dryly. "Just get home…we'll figure it out then…Pepper misses you." he said trying to cheer his best friend up and he did. Tony smiled "I miss her too…don't tell her I'm coming…I want it to be a surprise…" he said and Rhodey laughed and said "Sure no problem bro…it's about six right now…so that means she's probably kicking your dads butt in chess." Tony snorted "I've got to see that…" he muttered and said goodbye.

Rhodey shut his phone and smiled. He got up quickly and made his way to the hospital with some good news.

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Howard looked at the chess board carefully before he made his move; he smirked and moved his bishop to take Pepper's knight not noticing he left his king wide open. Pepper smiled and took her own bishop and took the king out of the game, "Checkmate." She said happily. Howard looked at the board and at the redhead with a dumbfounded expression, "How?" he asked frustrated and Pepper merely shrugged and coughed. Rhodey walked into the room wearing a large smiled "Hey guys…" he said and Pepper just coughed in response. "Hello Rhodey…" Howard said still staring at the chess board in confusion, "How are you feeling Pepper?" Rhodey asked.

Pepper sighed and frowned "Not any better…" she said and coughed. Her head ache along with every part of her body; she couldn't stop coughing up blood. It had the doctors very worried at first but soon enough they noticed it was coming in very little amounts. For now they just kept a very close eye on her. Rhodey gently squeezed Pepper's shoulder, his phone beeped and he read the message he got. "Hey Howard…can I talk to you out in the hall for a sec?" he asked grinning. Howard looked up from the game board and nodded, they left and Pepper frowned in confusion.

She sat there silently looking at the ceiling, she was curious on when Tony was going to be home. Just then the door opened, she was just expecting Rhodey or Howard coming into her room so she just kept looking at the ceiling silently. Whoever it was sat on the side of her bed and took her hand, she looked over and gasped in shock. "TONY!" she squealed happily and lunged towards him giving him a big hug. Tony chuckled and hugged her back happily, they pulled apart and Tony looked at Pepper carefully. "How are you feeling?" he asked worriedly and Pepper frowned and shook her head, "Not that great…but I'm a bit happier that you're back!" she said and smiled. Tony gave her a small smile and brushed a stray red strand of hair out of her face, "I'm happy to be home…" he said quietly. Pepper tilted her head to the side "did you get what you needed?" she asked and Tony nodded slowly. "Then what's wrong?" she asked taking his hand, Tony sighed and smiled "I'm just tired…long trip." He said.

Pepper shifted in her bed making room for him to fit beside her, "Come on…watch a movie with me…maybe you'll get some sleep." She said smirking. Tony chuckled and shook his head "I should get back to the lab…" he said looking at the clock. They only had a week left; Pepper shook her head and pointed to the spot next to her. "You. Here. Now." She said with authority. Tony couldn't help but smile and nod, "Yes ma'am." he said and crawled into bed next to her. Pepper took the TV remote and turned on the movie she was planning on watching, Tony yawned and curled up on his side. He wrapped his arms around Pepper's waist and rested his head in the crook of her neck; Pepper smiled and ran her fingers through his hair as they watched the movie. Soon enough Tony's quiet snoring filled the room; Pepper yawned and sank down so they were level to each other.

Two hours later Howard and Rhodey crept into the room to check on the two teens. They grinned at what they had found; Tony and Pepper were curled on their sides facing each other. Pepper head rested up against Tony's chest and Tony held Pepper impossibly close to him. Rhodey put his finger to his mouth and pointed to the door; Howard nodded and followed him out.

**(A/N Ok soooo craptastic ending! Sorry it took sooooo long! School was being very UGH! This couple of weeks…that and my net went down for a day or two…and I had to do reviews and stuff from school…lol well Review? Please? I haven't heard from you guys in a while! I miss ya! :D)**


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